The second model from “The Mentalization Guidebook” we’ll share is “MacLean’s triune brain”. The model is based on human evolutionary development and describes what happens when a person is traumatized. In the model the brain is divided into a reptile brain, a mammalian brain, and a thinking brain. The model can help to understand why primitive parts of the brain often take over when a person is traumatized, and there is no access to the more rational parts of the brain.
You can find all the models and read much more about mentalization in our book “The Mentalization Guidebook”. The book is a tool for professionals working with traumatized and neglected people who want to use mentalization in their work.
